Crawford County is named for William Harris Crawford, who was a presidential candidate as well as United States Secretary of the Treasury and Secretary of War.
Surrounding County Courthouses:
N – Gasconade County and Franklin County
E – Washington County and Iron County
S – Iron County and Dent County
W – Phelps County and Gasconade County
Created: January 23, 1829
County Seat:
Little Piney River 1829 – 1834
Liberty Hill 1834 – 1835
Steelville 1835 – present
County Courthouse – Steelville
Location: SW – Main Street / South 2nd Street
Built: 1885 – 1886
Style: Federalist
Architect: J J Upchurch
Contractor: Hollow and Salzer
Description: The building faces north and is a two story red colored brick, wood and stone structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Steelville. The building is 71 feet by 36 feet. The north front has a porch supported by four white colored columns. The center section projects from the main building and has a peaked roof. In the interior, the County Circuit Court courtroom is located on the second story. The building houses the County Circuit Court of the 42nd Judicial Circuit. An addition was added on the east side in 1974. The architect was Dan Mullen and the contractor was Cyrus Dace of Dace Construction Company. On the east side is the County Circuit Court Building containing a County Circuit Court courtroom..
See: The 42nd Judicial Circuit includes Dent County, Iron County, Reynolds County and Wayne County.
History: The county was created in 1829 and Little Piney River was selected as the county seat. The first courthouse was the log home of James Harrison at Little Piney River. The county seat was moved to Liberty Hill in 1834 and then to Steelville in 1835. A clerk’s office was built in 1837. The second courthouse was designed by M W Trask and built by Obadiah Ferguson in 1839 to 1844. The third courthouse was built in 1857 and burned on February 15, 1873. The fourth courthouse was built by A E Dye and Sons under the supervision of Joe Davis at a cost of $9,775 in 1873 and was destroyed by fire on January 5, 1884. The fifth courthouse and present was constructed in 1885 to 1886 at a cost of $7,500.
County Courthouse – Steelville
County Circuit Court Building – Steelville
Photos taken 2009, 2024 and 2026
Images 15*